2022 Missouri Legislative Summary

During this year’s legislative session, MOST Legislative Policy Fellows received research requests on over 140 policy topics. We’ve recapped many of the bills that made it across the finish line, and several that didn’t.

Use these links to jump to the appropriate section below: Agriculture & Natural Resources | Education | Elections | Environment | Health & Mental Health | Human Services & Public Safety | Utilities

Agriculture & Natural Resources

Agriculture Economic Opportunities

An omnibus agricultural bill (HB 1720) sponsored by Rep. Brad Pollitt (District 52, R-Sedalia) is headed to the Governor’s desk. The Agricultural Economic Opportunities bill, which contains a variety of agricultural incentive programs, is intended to boost economic opportunity for those working in or closely to the agricultural sector in Missouri. If signed by the Governor, these programs will be funded through general revenue with an expected cost ranging between $11 and $40 million by 2025.

The bill extends the tax credits on meat processing facility expansion and modernization, as well as energy credits for additional uses of wood, such as discarded sawdust and other wood refuse. The bill also creates the producer and retailer blended tax incentive program, and establishes an additional biodiesel fuel tax credit.

Additionally, this bill redefines the term “small farmer” to be someone who is a Missouri resident and makes less than $500,000 of gross sales per year. These farmers and their families will be able to apply for a loan program for beef cattle, dairy cattle, swine, or sheep/goats

In an effort to prevent future state and local food supply disruptions, the bill also includes a specialty agricultural crops loan program and a tax incentive program for urban farming, both of which will be administered by the Missouri Agriculture and Small Business Authority (MASBDA) of the Missouri Department of Agriculture.

Although the Rural Workforce Development Act, which intended to provide a tax credit for certain investments made in businesses located in rural Missouri, was omitted from the last version of the bill, the final bill does include a provision that establishes the Joint Committee on Rural Economic Development. The Committee will be composed of Senate and House members to investigate issues relating to the economic development of rural areas in Missouri and to submit reports of its activities and legislative actions to the General Assembly.

Related Science Notes: Meat Processing Facilities, Biodiesel in Missouri, Family Farms & the Family Farms Act, Specialty Crops, Tax Credit for Urban Agriculture in Missouri, Rural Workforce Development

Eminent Domain Reform

Another bill that will be heading to the Governor’s desk for signature this year is HB 2005, sponsored by Representative Mike Haffner (District 55, R-Pleasant Hill). HB 2005 addresses whether and how utility companies can use eminent domain language and practices to buy land from farmers in Missouri in order to build power transmission lines. Versions of this bill have been introduced in the Missouri legislature for the past eight years.

HB2005 will require electrical corporations building transmission lines, except those under a cooperative business plan, to provide at least half of their electrical load to Missouri consumers in order to be considered a public service that can claim property through eminent domain. The bill also includes four important provisions:

1. Developers must pay 150% of the fair market value for agricultural land in condemnation proceedings.
2. At least one of the three court-appointed commissioners in those proceedings must be a farmer in the same county for at least a decade.
3. If the proceeding is initiated by an electrical company and the amount awarded to the property owner is greater than the condemning authority’s offer, courts are permitted to award attorneys’ fees to the property owner.
4. The developers will need to start construction within seven years of getting easements; otherwise, their rights to the property will expire.

Legislation addressing eminent domain reform (not just for utility purposes) in the state of Missouri has been filed in the Missouri Legislature for over 20 years, with this year’s HB 2005 being the first after the 2010 session to make it to the Governor’s desk.

Related Science Note: Eminent Domain and Economic Contributions

Education

Funding

The K-12 Education appropriations bill (HB 3002) contains several new or newly funded budget items, in addition to several large one-time allocations for education and child care using federal ARPA funds. The Teacher Career Ladder program gives teachers salary supplements for doing extra work like mentoring students, developing curriculums, and professional development. Though the program has been in statute since 1985, this will be the first time the program has been funded since 2010 with about ~$37.5 million in funding.

Also new in the budget is $1 million in funding for no-cost menstrual products to be provided in schools. Period poverty is an ongoing issue for many students in Missouri schools who do not have adequate access to menstrual hygiene products like pads and tampons, and are faced with skipping school or using unhygienic alternatives like rags or paper towels.

Related Science Notes: No-Cost Period Products in Schools, No-Cost Period Products in Schools: Implementation, Teacher Career Ladders

In a compromise, HB 1552 will adjust the public school funding formula to give charter schools additional funding. The way the original bill was written, the funding would have come at the expense of the traditional public school. The original bill also had additional consequences for low performing schools not including in the final version.

Related Science Notes: Charter School Funding, Public School (K-12) Accountability

Educational Outcomes & Resources

Senate Bill 681, an education omnibus, contains many different provisions. Several provisions create rules for establishing and assessing specific educational programs or institutions, such as those pertaining to teacher certification, innovation waivers, gifted education, and recovery high schools. The bill also contains bipartisan provision to provide additional resources to students, such as plans to address reading difficulties, lead in water, and mental health in schools. Finally, this legislation contains a provision requiring public universities in the state to provide course credit for AP exam scores of 3 and higher.

Related Science Notes: Dyslexia & Reading Difficulties, Lead in Drinking Water, Career & Technical Education, School Innovation Waivers, Social Studies Curriculum, Gifted Education, Special Education in Missouri, Interdistrict Open Enrollment, Recovery High Schools, Teacher Certification & Permits, Teacher Career Ladders, Mental Health Awareness Programs in Schools, Workforce Diplomas, College Credit Based on AP Scores

School Regulations

Despite receiving much attention both within Missouri and nationally, no bills that would have prevented transgender athletes from competing in high school sports (HB 2197, HB 2461, HB 2734, SB 781) were passed this session.

Additionally, a “Parents’ Bill of Rights” was not passed this session despite numerous proposals related to curricular oversight, especially relating to topics such as race and racism. However, SB 681 was passed and requires school boards to have a community engagement policy on record that includes a process for residents to add items to school board meetings.

Related Science Note: Discussing Race and Racism in Public K-12 Schools

Elections

Federal Congressional Rules

During the final days of session, the Missouri General Assembly truly agreed and finally passed HB 2909, which creates a new federal Congressional map. Another bill sent to the Governor’s desk was SCR 25, which asks the United States Congress to call for a convention to propose an amendment to the U.S. Constitution that would impose term limits to the U.S. House and Senate.

State-level Voting Procedures

HB 1878 also made it through both chambers and introduces several changes to voting, including:

• Making photo IDs required to vote.
• Preventing mail-in ballots from being authorized by any executive or administrative order, or by any general law.
• Establishing no-excuse absentee voting two weeks prior to an election.
• Requiring absentee ballots to be received prior to the closing of polls if received through a common carrier such as USPS, and prior to election day otherwise.

Related Science Notes: Voter ID Laws, Absentee Voting, and Voter Fraud

Environment

Natural Resources

House Bill 2485 was truly agreed and finally passed on the last day of session in the House. As part of this bill, recycled asphalt shingles will be allowed to be used for fill, reclamation, and other beneficial purposes without permits. In addition, SCR 31 passed both chambers and approves the Missouri Water Resource Plan. This is a plan developed by the Department of Natural Resources that attempts to identify future shortfalls in water supplies, and explores options to address those water needs.

Energy

Senate Bill 745 will create a task force to research net metering and a second task force to investigate the taxation of solar energy systems. The bill will also prevent any deed restriction, covenant, or similar binding agreement from prohibiting the installation of rooftop solar panels.

Related Science Notes: Recycled Asphalt Shingles, Flood Resilience, Net Metering, Solar Panel Property Taxation

Health & Mental Health

Insurance and Licensing

One area of interest was an expansion of licensing authority by medical professionals. If signed by the Governor, HB 2149 will expand the ability for medical professionals to practice in Missouri with a valid out-of-state license, as well as expand the type of professionals that can provide home health services. Additionally, it will authorize dental board pilot projects and establish the interstate licensure compact for audiologists. House Bill 2331 was also passed and will establish provisions that require regular inspections of long-term care facilities and tax credits for medical preceptorships.

Related Science Notes: Medical Licensure Reciprocity in Missouri, Home Health Care & Licensing Standards

Patient Visitation Rights

One area of concern for the Missouri General Assembly was the ability for loved ones to be able to have visitation access to long-term care facilities and hospitals. HB 2116 was adopted in both houses to ensure that each patient is always allowed two compassionate care visitors during end-of-life care.

Substance Use

While several bills intended to treat victims of substance use did not make it through the Missouri General Assembly (SB 1037 and HB 2603), one bill (HB 2162) was passed that allows the Department of Corrections access to the state Opioid Addiction Treatment and Recovery Fund to pay for prevention services, health care, and law enforcement costs. House Bill 1667 was also passed, and establishes the Kratom Consumer Protection Act, meant to ensure the quality and integrity of kratom products.

Related Science Notes: Substance Abuse & Naltrexone Hydrochloride, Kratom Consumer Protection Act

Health Care Omnibus Packages

A health omnibus bill (SB 710), which was initially designed to establish a school nurse seizure plan for students with epilepsy, was passed after being expanded to include a sickle cell awareness provision for annual reviews of treatments through MO HealthNet, a Black maternal health week, school nurse administration of epinephrine syringes, a task force for Alzheimer’s disease, expansion of a medical student loan program, compassionate care visitation, modifications for organ donation rules, and extension to the Missouri Rx plan.

Another major bill that received attention this year was SB 690, which was initially designed to establish a legal syringe access program, but was expanded into a healthcare omnibus package, and did not receive a final approval by the Senate.

Related Science Notes: School Nurse Seizure Action Plans, Sickle Cell Disease, Syringe Access Programs

Human Services & Public Safety

Social Services, Public Safety, & Corrections

This year, legislators had a lot of interest in childcare and women’s health, homelessness, and public safety funding. Many bills were very close to making it to the Governor’s desk. However, only a handful of bills were truly agreed to and finally passed.

Those that made it across the finish line include HB 1606 which included provisions for addressing homelessness and SB 678 which modifies KC public safety funding. Language that would establish a correctional center nursery program where incarcerated women can reside together for up to 18 months, was added to several bills and ultimately was truly agreed to and finally passed as part of SB 683.

Related Science Notes: Homelessness in Missouri, Male Homelessness, Veteran Homelessness, Public Safety Funding, Prison Nursery Programs

Family & Children’s Issues

Bills related to the extension of medical coverage for pregnant and postpartum women were filed this year. These bills sought to increase the duration of insurance coverage for eligible individuals from 60 days to 12 months (SB 639, SB 698). This bill was added an as amendment to SB 690, but it did not pass out of the Senate.

Additionally, accessibility to oral contraceptives by permitting pharmacists the ability to dispense to those over 18 years old with a physician prescription was removed from SB 710 during conference committee.

In recent years, numerous bills have been filed to reduce the tax rate of menstrual hygiene products and diapers. This was tagged on as an amendment to HB 1606, however, it was removed during conference committee.

Related Science Notes: Postpartum Medical Coverage, Contraceptive Accessibility, Menstrual Hygiene Products, Diaper Accessibility

The CROWN ACT, which prohibits discriminatory practices on the basis of hair texture and protective hair styles, passed out of the House but failed to move in the Senate.

Lastly, there were numerous bills filed pertaining to film and entertainment tax credits that were very well received during committee hearings but failed to move beyond either chamber.

Utilities

Electricity

Senate Bill 820 is an omnibus bill containing several utilities-related provisions that passed both chambers. It requires political subdivisions that require the installation of electric vehicle charging stations to pay for the costs associated with installing, maintaining, and operating those stations. It also establishes the Missouri Nuclear Clean Power Act, which will allow electrical corporations to make charges based on the costs of ongoing construction of a clean baseload generating plant or renewable source generating facility that is at least 200 MW.

Related Science Notes: Electric Vehicle Charging Stations, Nuclear Energy

Broadband

Senate Bill 820 also includes several broadband-related provisions. These will increase the internet speed threshold for what are considered underserved households; establish a broadband council; explicitly allow any political subdivision to erect vertical real estate or towers; allow two or more political subdivisions to form a broadband improvement district; alter the state broadband grant program to address reliability and broadband availability mapping; and improve internet access at the State Capitol building.

Related Science Notes: Vertical Real Estate Management, Public-Private partnerships, and Funding Benchmarks for Broadband Deployment, Broadband Development Task Forces, Broadband Improvement Districts, Broadband Availability Mapping, Granular Broadband Mapping

ACCESS OUR FULL SCIENCE NOTE DATABASE: https://mostpolicyinitiative.org/policy-initiatives/legislative-science-notes/